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Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2has added a fifth difficulty tier in its October patch, the first major PvE update we’ve received since launch. This difficulty tier pushes your Astartes to their limits, throwing hordes of Majoris and Extremis-class forces your way with limited ammo reserves and a restrictive armor mechanic.
Clearing a Lethal Operation is a difficult task, but doing so will reward you with tons of XP and progress towards a unique cosmetic. In this guide, we explain how Lethal difficulty works, how the new armor mechanic works, and showcase the cosmetic reward you can earn by clearing all seven Operations on Lethal.
What Is Lethal Difficulty
Lethal is the fifth difficulty tier for PvE Operations that was added in the October update.There are no unlock pre-requisites for this difficulty tier, but it is tuned for coordinated Level 25 players. While you may technically play Lethal Operations solo, they are extremely difficult to beat without the help of other players.
In terms of difficulty, it’s the same as Ruthless but with a few added modifiers. HP values are the same, but enemy damage output seems increased. Hostiles are more aggressive in combat, ammo drops are scarce,and Extremis enemiesnow spawn in groups.
How Armor Works In Ruthless
The single largest change in Ruthless difficulty isTight Formation.While your squad is within 15 meters of each other, your armor can replenish like normal. Get too far from your squad, however, and your formation meter will break. This meansyou cannot restore armorat allunless it’s from an Armor Boost consumable.
We don’t just mean passive armor regeneration here.Minoris parrying, enemy executions, and even loadout perks that restore armor will cease to function.You must stick close to your squad in Ruthless for any hope of survival. Worst of all,if your allies die, it’s impossible to restore your armorsince they’re technically not near you. This is likely a bug and will hopefully be addressed in a future update. Until then, take these missions slow.
The Best Classes For Lethal
Every squad will want aTactical Marinefor this difficulty tier.Auspex Scaneffectively triples your team’s DPS against tougher enemies, which is downright necessary for eliminating Terminus-class units and other difficult foes. Beyond that, any class that has strong burst DPS weapons will work well here, such as the Sniper and Heavy.
Unfortunately, due to the armor changes in Ruthless,we donotrecommend playing Vanguard or Assault.Pushing ahead of your squad is heavily punished in this mode, which is the preferred playstyle of these two classes. That doesn’t mean you can’t beat Ruthless with either class; you absolutely can. But doing so is going to be much more difficult than playing as a Tactical or Sniper.
Lethal Difficulty Rewards
Your main incentive for beating Lethal difficulty is to earn theSurvivor’s Helmetfor all classes. This is a scorched variant of the standard Primaris helmet with visible cracks and a broken visor. You must beatevery Operation on Lethal difficulty to unlock this helmet.
Lethal difficulty dropsRelic-tier Armoury Data. If you need Relic items, you’ll have an easier time on Ruthless.
Beyond the cosmetic, the only other reason to farm Lethal is for weapon XP. A successful clear grants about 2,800XP, close to a Ruthless clear with a Gene Seed. Even still, wedon’trecommend playing Lethal solely for XP farming. Runs are significantly slower due to increased enemy aggression and Extremis forces. If you need to level a new class, play Substantial or Ruthless instead.
